Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane has admitted that he thinks the popular US cartoon should have ended by now.

The 37-year-old told The Hollywood Reporter that the show, which has just finished its 10th series, has been running for too long.

"Part of me thinks that Family Guy should have already ended. I think seven seasons is about right," he said.

The surreal show follows the Griffin family, including Dad Peter, which MacFarlane provides the voice for.

"I talk to the fans and in a way I'm kind of secretly hoping for them to say we're done with it," he said.

"There are plenty of people who say the show is kind of over the hill, but still the vast majority go pale in the face when I mention the possibility."

The writer, who is also responsible for other US cartoons including American Dad and The Cleveland Show, said he would prefer to end the show and release a film every few years.

There is a deal in place for a Family Guy movie, which MacFarlane is reported to be writing along with series co-producer Ricky Blitt.

He is also set to bring back a revamped version of 1960s Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Flintstones.

When he made the announcement in May, MacFarlane revealed Fred Flintstone had been "the very first cartoon character I drew at age two"

Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane has admitted that he thinks the popular US cartoon should have ended by now.

The 37-year-old told The Hollywood Reporter that the show, which has just finished its 10th series, has been running for too long.

"Part of me thinks that Family Guy should have already ended. I think seven seasons is about right," he said.

The surreal show follows the Griffin family, including Dad Peter, which MacFarlane provides the voice for.

"I talk to the fans and in a way I'm kind of secretly hoping for them to say we're done with it," he said.

"There are plenty of people who say the show is kind of over the hill, but still the vast majority go pale in the face when I mention the possibility."

The writer, who is also responsible for other US cartoons including American Dad and The Cleveland Show, said he would prefer to end the show and release a film every few years.

There is a deal in place for a Family Guy movie, which MacFarlane is reported to be writing along with series co-producer Ricky Blitt.

He is also set to bring back a revamped version of 1960s Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Flintstones.

When he made the announcement in May, MacFarlane revealed Fred Flintstone had been "the very first cartoon character I drew at age two"

Family guy lost it's "bite" a few years ago. But hell, the Simpsons lost their edge 10 years ago, and stll on TV. Simple reason. It makes money.

Am curious to see what sort of Flintstone version Seth will think up. You just know Dino will wind up in bed with someone.

i dunno, the flintstones just seemed so dyed-in-the-wool 1960s. betty and wilma were flat out homemakers, fred and barney were union men. can you picture fred and wilma as a two-income home? how's wilma gonna work outside the house, that bloody apron was plainly physically attached to her body. otherwise, they'll have to go with the conceit that fred can afford a house with a yard in the suburbs on a construction worker's salary. fat chance. my guess these days is that construction workers are probably a step from going on food stamps the way Wal*Mart employees are.

also, let's not forget the horrible 90s movie "the flintstones" with john goodman. that should serve as a warning that that ground has been thoroughly salted.

Family guy lost it's "bite" a few years ago. But hell, the Simpsons lost their edge 10 years ago, and stll on TV. Simple reason. It makes money.


I agree; in fact, they might've lost their "edge" even before that. I haven't much cared for episodes from after '99 or so.

The recent episode in which Brian does 'shrooms and Meg tells off Peter, Lois, and Chris was awesome!

Nonetheless, I think it's time for McFarland to wind it down. 

If I was a network exec, I would tell McFarland to do the Flintstones on his own dime.  Seth is being goofy and sentimental.  He has a lot of potential to create another hit series, but the Flintstones ain't it.
::)

The recent episode in which Brian does 'shrooms and Meg tells off Peter, Lois, and Chris was awesome!


This.  Seeing Meg flip out and assert herself was like the scene with Stewie and Brian in the vault, but funnier.  We've known these characters for years; seeing them do something completely outside their normal boundaries of action is intrinsically funny.

On the one hand, McFarlane has enough spinoff series that he can afford to send Family Guy out before it degenerates into The Simpsons.

On the other hand, both American Dad and The Cleveland Show are pale imitations of Family Guy.  We recognize the formula, we enjoy the characters, but we still want the original.  

On the gripping hand, I really want to see what happens if Seth were to feed the manatees a massive overdose psychedelics on the grounds that the series has nothing to lose.  The series would go out, but it would go out in a blaze of surrealist glory.